Part of each trip took place on what Christina calls “the backpackers boat of the Nile.” “We’d visit Luxor, Aswan, Hurghada and Cairo and do lots of side trips like riding donkeys at sunrise to the Valley of the Kings, riding camels into abandoned monasteries in the desert, dinner at Nubian family homes,” recalls Christina. Plus, she loved Egypt and was fascinated by the country’s ancient history.Īs tour leader, Christina was responsible for shepherding groups of 25 travelers on two-week-long trips around the country. “To be able to say I fell in love while sailing down the Nile under the moon and stars sounds very romantic but that’s exactly what happened,” Christina tells CNN Travel today.Ĭhristina had arrived in Egypt in October 1996, spurred on by her self-described “itchy feet.” She was 28 and desperate to see the world, so the six month stint as an Egypt-based tour guide for an adventure travel company seemed like the perfect opportunity. Since meeting as colleagues on a Nile tour boat, Christina, from the UK, and Wahid, from Egypt, had spent every moment they could together. The question was somehow both out of nowhere and long-awaited. “So, are we getting married or what?” he asked.Ĭhristina almost laughed. The couple were sitting on a bench overlooking the River Nile one evening, the ancient Temple of Luxor illuminated behind them. Christina Ward had only known Wahid Kandil for six months when he asked her to marry him.
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